Hip Deep Fourteen years ago, with support from the NEH, we created Hip Deep, a subseries integrated into the overall Afropop Worldwide program offering. Hip Deep programs build on the techniques and format developed for Afropop Worldwide, but are enhanced by rigorous academic and field research that translates into higher production values. Every episode of Hip Deep actively involves leading humanities scholars to illuminate a wealth of history, culture, politics, ethnic and spiritual contexts. Over 15 years, Hip Deep has produced over 110 humanities-focused programs and a wide range of supplementary Web resources (interviews, videos, text/photo features, podcasts), all easily accessible within the Hip Deep section of our website. Hip Deep amplifies Afropop Worldwide’s longstanding commitment to disseminate humanities themes to the general public through world music via a growing set of media pathways.
Hip Deep March 15, 2018
Afropop Classic February 22, 2018
Closeup February 6, 2018
Hip Deep February 1, 2018
Afropop Classic January 25, 2018
As Afropop turns 30, we take a stroll down memory lane to enjoy some of the extraordinary live recordings we brought to the public radio community in the 1990s including Thione Seck in Dakar, Gerardo Nunez in New York, Abdel Aziz el Mubarak in London, Lobi Traore in Bamako, a carnival comparsa in Cuba and David Rudder in New York. Co-hosted by Georges Collinet, Siji Awoyinka, and Sean Barlow.
Closeup January 23, 2018
The songs of Betsayda Machado, the leading voice of Afro-Venezuelan music, address many of the most painful topics of daily life of her country: hunger, poverty, shortages of basic medicine, and deadly street riots – stemming from the current economic and political crisis in Venezuela.
Hip Deep January 11, 2018
Closeup January 9, 2018
Amal Hussein and Hamdi Mohamed have a lot in common. Both were born in Kenya, where their parents fled as refugees during the Somali Civil War, and both came to Boston when they were just a few years old. They’re both poets — and equally important for this story — both their grandmothers are poets...
Afropop Classic January 4, 2018
Alex Wolfe, director of the film "Santo Domingo Blues: The Story of Bachata" brings us live ambience and stories of bachata stars Luis Vargas, Antony Santos, Luis Segura, Adridia Ventura.
Closeup December 26, 2017
Underneath the streets of New York City, in the tunnels and stations of the busiest subway system in the country, there is a thriving music scene. Amidst the noise of passing trains, we meet Papa Fara, a Cameroonian xylophonist and singer, who plays for tips and captures the love of strangers and makes friends with his quick, warm smile. But, behind the smile and beautiful melodies, something is troubling Papa Fara. There’s a reason he’d rather be underground.
Afropop Classic December 21, 2017
In this program, we explore the new "Afropolitan" sounds of Paris, from concert halls to studios, from the heart of the city to immigrant neighborhoods in the banlieues.
Hip Deep December 14, 2017
In recognition of the end of Robert Mugabe's 37-year rule in Zimbabwe, we are rebroadcasting our program on the career of Thomas Mapfumo during the Mugabe years.
Closeup December 12, 2017
We examine how the unresolved issues that triggered the devastating Biafran War in the 1960s still resonate and persist in the Niger Delta today on this Afropop Closeup.
Closeup November 28, 2017
Kizito Mihigo is one of Rwanda’s most beloved singers, yet he is currently imprisoned, serving a 10-year sentence for treason. In 2014, Mihigo released a song which criticized the wartime actions of Rwanda’s governing political party. The song went viral, sparking a nationwide dialogue around the genocide, and weeks later, Mihigo was arrested on charges of conspiracy to assassinate the president of Rwanda, Paul Kagame.
Afropop Classic November 16, 2017
Here’s Afropop’s annual roundup of great live recordings we’ve captured over the past year but haven't found time to air.
Closeup November 14, 2017
Sound clashes have been a mainstay of reggae culture for decades. Mobile sound system teams face off to see who can best move the crowd with their selections of records and exclusive "dub plate" jingles. On a recent late night in Queens, seven sounds competed for the U.S. champion title, and many were surprised by the winner. We meet the sound-system operators and talk to fans about why they love the clash scene. Produced by Noah Schaffer.
Hip Deep November 9, 2017
Hip Deep November 2, 2017
Closeup October 31, 2017
Hip Deep October 19, 2017
Closeup October 17, 2017
Ghanaian-Greek rapper Negros Tou Moria is carving out new territory and challenging stereotypes with rap music that is deeply rooted in Greek language and culture.
Closeup October 3, 2017
Two very different Bay Area artists, Meklit Hadero and Zena Carlota, use their music to explore what it means to live on two sides of a hyphen: African-American, black-artist, Ethiopian-American, female-musician, to name a few.
Closeup September 19, 2017
Afropop Classic September 7, 2017
Closeup September 5, 2017
Afropop Classic August 17, 2017
Closeup August 15, 2017
Here we encounter the musical and philosophical movement called rapso–an infectiously danceable rhythmic oration style that comes with a philosophy championing a Trinidadian identity in the face of a colonial history and a globalized present.
Closeup July 25, 2017
In a context of ongoing violence and N.G.O. intervention in Eastern Congo, a festival culture is emerging based on the concept of “peace-building” through the arts.
Afropop Classic June 5, 2025
Hip Deep May 29, 2025
Blog May 27, 2025
Afropop Classic May 22, 2025
Hip Deep May 8, 2025
This program will initiate listeners into one of the most enchanting and mysterious musical practices in Africa, BaAka people music.
Hip Deep May 1, 2025
Afropop Classic April 24, 2025
Hip Deep April 17, 2025
Hip Deep April 10, 2025
Hip Deep April 3, 2025
Blog April 1, 2025
Hip Deep March 20, 2025
Afropop Classic March 6, 2025
Hip Deep February 25, 2025
Afropop Classic February 20, 2025
Funk is a perennial favorite. In this panoramic history of the grooviest of genres, we hear track after track of absolute boogie-down classics.
Hip Deep February 13, 2025
Afropop Classic February 6, 2025
Blog February 4, 2025
